• Traditional Indian drinks like butter mil, bel juice, coconut water, and nimbu pani provide many health benefits and nutrients . These benefits are absent when you consume bottled or tetra packed drinks.
• When we cook at home we make sure that the raw dals and rice are thoroughly washed and drained which removes to a large extend the artificial color and the pesticides in them. When we eat food in restaurants we don't know whether these precautions have been taken.
• The oil/fat we use at home is what we think is healthy. Whereas, in the usual restaurants what gets used is the cheapest oil and that which will enhance the shelf life of the food.
• Extracting butter at home ensures that the vitamin A and D in the butter gets preserved.
• Salads can be washed adequately and liberally eaten.
• At home we let the flour rise through natural mechanisms which add to the nutrient value and vitamin content of the flour (while making idlis, pakodi, other food items which require the flour to rise). In ready to eat foods and junk foods and foods made in restaurants they use raising salts like baking soda which are oxidants and have the potential of causing cancer in the long run.
• Although, pickles are high in salt and need to be moderated, they are an essential part of the diet in places where fresh fruits and vegetables are not available for example in deserts of Rajasthan or the snow covered peak in the hills. When pickles are made at home the aseptic precautions taken and fermenting in the sun is used which preserves much of the nutrition and provides longevity to the pickles. Pickles made at home are delicately prepared and handled to contain nutrition and add longevity . Pickles made in restaurants and those available commercially however use preservatives to provide longevity and preservatives are oxidants which have the potential to cause cancer. Much of the nutrition is also lost in the process.
• Spices in used restaurants may not be pure and may contain added colors (which again are harmful) and other adulterants. When we use home ground spices we ensure purity of the spices.
• When we cook at home hygiene precautions are taken which may not be so in the restaurants. This could give rise to smouldering intestinal infections and gastric ulcers in the long run.
• When you cook at home you can control the quality of the flour, and spices .We can use whole grain, flour, pulses & pure home ground spices.The quality and quantity of the oil can be controlled.
• When you cook at home you can wash the dals, pulses and grains well to remove the dirt & pesticides.
• When you prepare salads at home you can wash or clean them well to remove dirt & germs.

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